About Jim Bamboulis

Recent Posts by Jim Bamboulis

Scammed in Istanbul, a Well Known Scam That Is…

Landed in Instanbul late at night. No idea where I was going. Alone.  Disoriented. Ignorant.  Lost.  Scared.  Thrilled.  Intoxicating mixture of thoughts and emotions.  13 million people.   Would anyone help me?  Not likely. Subway.  Trolley.  Foot.

Destination:  Sultanahmet District.  Ancient.  Classic.  Byzantium.

Greek-inspired Agia Sophia.  Stunning Blue Mosque. Topkapi Palace. Hippodrome.

All grandiose.

How did these monuments look when the Venetians first gazed upon them?  I can’t imagine.

11:30 pm.  I wondered if Turkish baths were open late.  Did Turkey have a law against sleeping in park benches?  Didn’t know.  Didn’t want to find out. Turkish prisons are a bitch, I’ve heard.

Found a hotel.  Saved.  Oasis.

Hotel Manager demands to keep my passport.  Valuable document.  Feel nervous.  Do it anyway.  Good decision.

Picture this:  Underground bar.  Dark.  30 minute walk from my hotel.  Having a drink. Alone.

A man approaches.  Asks to sit with me.  I think nothing of it.  He sits.

Small talk. 2 women approach.  Both sit, one on each side.  Waiter follows.  Finger foods and 2 glasses of wine, one for each lady.

The couple across the booth start to speak Turkish.  The woman next to me speaks broken English and immediately starts her sales pitch.

She persists.  I repeat. Little did I know I was becoming a victim of a classic scam.  One that is pulled on tourists all over the world, on a consistent basis. I don’t know how and why it didn’t dawn on me earlier but I finally realized that this was actually happening to me.  Ample street smarts but blinded in Istanbul.

Careful not to offend her and her pimp, who for all I know is sitting across the booth from me.  Make up a story.  I have a wife, kids.

She doesn’t buy it.  Frustrated at the rejection.  She begins to speak Turkish to the rest of the group.

I analyze and realize I’m in trouble.

Make a run for it? Push her out-of-the-way? No.  Too big a risk. Nobody knows I’m here.  Defenseless.

2 major things going against me:  I’m Greek, which for all I know makes me the enemy in Turkish eyes and I’m Canadian, which could make me look like a wealth Westerner.

I stay and face what comes next.

The women suddenly leave.

Another drink?  No.

The check?  Yes.

The waiter approaches, leaving it face down on the table.

$637 Canadian Dollars!  Losing my mind.  I had only 1 drink. In seconds I’m ordered to enter a back room.

Justice, Turkish style?

Mind racing.  Scared senseless.  What would happen to me?  What would I have to do?  How long does it take to pay off this debt in Istanbul.

I pray.  I plead.   Still oblivious.

Small room.  Thick air.  Gigantic sized owner.  Equally gigantic sized bouncer.  Small, wimpy looking Greek-Canadian.

“MONEY”, demands the owner. “I don’t have any money brother.”

He doesn’t believe me.  Pads me down.  Checks my shirt, my pants, my pockets.  He finds something. “What’s this?” I pull out my drivers’ licence.  Invaluable to him.  Pull out my camera and $20 million lira ($20 CDN dollars).  Not a big score.

“Take this money, brother.  This is all I have.”

30 seconds of silence.  Eternity. Don’t know what to think first.  Don’t know what will happen.  Don’t know anything.  I wait. “Go. Get out of here”, says the owner.

I sprint.  Across the bar.  Up the stairs. Out the door.  Down the main boulevard,  towards the hotel. 30 minute walk. 5 minute run.  Istanbul’s normally polluted air was intoxicating sweet that night.

Couldn’t think straight that night. Collected my thoughts the next day.

Luckily for me, I got out unscathed.

Can’t imagine what would have happened if I had my passport on me.  Credit card.  Debit card.  Unthinkable.  Relieved.

A scam.  Everyone was in on it.  Brilliant job.  For one night in Istanbul, I was the mark.

The moral of the story:  Just be aware that there are sometimes bigger forces at play.  Scams like this are rampant around the World.  Be as aware of your surroundings as possible and keep your eyes open.

But don’t forget to have fun.

 

What To Do & See in Ottawa in 2 Days

What comes to mind when I say Amsterdam?  What about Buenos Aires or Havana? Beijing, Rome or Moscow?  Depending on your experiences in any one of those cities, words like exciting, amazing, overrated or even boring may be used to describe them.

What about Ottawa?  What comes to mind now?  Anything?

In my opinion, Ottawa is a capital city that gets little to no respect.  It definitely doesn’t get much attention on the international stage and as far as North American capitals goes, it plays little brother to Washington DC.  A distant little brother.

Where DC wears the pants, Ottawa wears the socks.

Well if you don’t know much about Ottawa or dismiss it altogether as an uneventful, boring and mundane capital city, you haven’t looked beneath the surface hard and long enough.  Sure, compared to other towns, Ottawa is subdued and has about as much sex appeal as an unripe banana but still you have to give it its due respect.

Ottawa is a compact town with a bunch of great stuff going for it.  Sure it’s got a political side to it but its architecture, museums, markets and attractions, including the beautiful Rideau Canal (the Worlds longest ice-skating rink in the winter), shouldn’t be overlooked. Add a Beavertail to the mix and you have a pretty decent destination.

I spent 48 hours in Canada’s capital and I walked away with more than just a t-shirt.  Check it out.

 

Why Italy’s Cinque Terre Should Be on Your Must-See List

Italian Riviera.  Northwest Italy.  Liguria coast.  Closer to La Spezia than Genoa.  It’s there that you’ll find 5 magical small towns. Each with a distinct character yet connected by the all too beautiful landscape, pristine but somewhat chilly blue waters, sun drenched rock cliffs and charisma of the Italian spirit.

If Cinque Terre isn’t on your list of must-sees, then edit your list.

3 hours north of Rome, Cinque Terre is geographically situated in the middle of everything.  During the summer months, the uber wealthy more often than not intersect with family vacationers and backpackers looking for a cheap hostel. It’s an interesting mix.

“The Five Lands”. Made up of five villages: Monterosso al Mare, Vernazza, Corniglia, Manarola, and Riomaggiore. The coastline, the five villages, and the surrounding hillsides are all part of the Cinque Terre National Park and is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Walking trails are the best way to see all 5. In spots, you may have to hike up some steps. The Sentiero Azzurro, aka ”Light Blue Trail”, connects the five villages. The trail from Riomaggiore to Manarola is called the Via Dell’Amore, or the “Love Walk”. The stretch from Manarola to Corniglia is the easiest to hike, but take note that the main trail into Corniglia finishes with a challenging climb of nearly 400 stairs.

 

Canada: Ice Festival in Toronto

In late February in Toronto, there was still no significant snow to speak of. Incredible and true.

Actually, not much cold weather to speak of either.  Sure, there’s the occasional cold day where temps plummet to the point where people get into horrible moods and wish they booked a one way flight to anywhere but here. Toronto hasn’t seen much of a winter but people being people, many still complain.

For the past few years, Yorkville, one of the city’s more upscale neighborhoods, hosts a weekend Ice Festival. A fun distraction to the sometimes unbearable cold.  Local businesses create ice sculptures and display them to the public.  Streets are closed off to vehicular traffic and foot traffic takes over.  Thousands show up, stroll the avenues with lattes and cameras in hand and take in the ice art.

The return of warmer temperatures stayed away long enough for me to hit the streets and take some pictures of the frozen outdoor gallery.

 

 

Visiting Toronto? Head North & Take in Elora and the Gorge for Some Ontario Magic

If a friend of mine didn’t mention it, I wouldn’t have known about it, much less consider checking it out.

Elora, Ontario is about an hour and a half drive west of Toronto.  It’s a small town with a few thousand people at most.  Overlooked and overshadowed by other, more notable day trip destinations, Elora proves that it can stand up with the best of them.  A pristine clean, very cute, boutique filled town, there is a community wide fascination with everything Paris.  So much so that if there wasn’t already a Paris, Ontario, residents would probably sign a petition to have the town’s name changed.

But another big draw in Elora is the nearby Gorge.  In fact, it attracts hikers, water tubers, and kayakers who look for both the rush of decent currents and the serenity of a calm river.

Check out the pictures for yourselves.  And Elora location details too.

Elora offers an alternative to the same old day trips from Toronto.  Don’t get me wrong, Niagara Falls and other popular destinations are can’t miss, but Elora has a small town feel with a splash of adventure.

Niagara Falls & About: What To See, Do & Eat in Port Dalhousie

There are plenty of things to do and see in the Niagara Falls Region.  Besides the Falls, there are several wineries and of course restaurants, cafes and boutiques.  Visitors here tend to stay on the main highway and see only the main sites.

I usually do that too. But this time, I changed it up a bit. Besides, sitting at a winery and having someone explain how to drink it and what flavors I should be tasting gets old.  And I’m not one to argue.  If you tell me that a wine has a hint of pear, I will believe you.  My wine tasting skills are not refined in the least.

That being said, I recently re-visited the area and decided to explore more than just the traditional.  See things off the beaten track, come back with different experiences.

Port Dalhousie has often been one of those overlooked spots.  Always intended to go but never did.  Until now. Picturesque, the town is located on the harbour surrounded by sailboats.  Known for its party atmosphere, it’s also truly is a soothing, quaint little place with friendly people.

But the question remained:  Where can I get some non-pub food around here?

We asked around.  The answer we kept getting back was, Treadwell. They pride themselves on farm to table food.  Actually, the farms are literally within only a few miles of the restaurant so anything less than fresh and delicious would have been a disappointment.

Luckily, it wasn’t.

The restaurant is located on the harbor, surrounded by sailboats and serene water. Wine, salad, salmon and duck all great.  We were too hungry to film the mains.  But we did film the appetizer platter.  Take a look, get an idea of what to expect from Treadwell.

Details: 61 Lakeport Road in Old Port Dalhousie, Ontario, Canada.

A 9/11 Tribute in Pictures…

New York City.  2001.  A tribute.  Of the towers.  Of the City.  Of loved ones lost.

In pictures.

Toronto’s The Local Company in Greektown

Sleek, sophisticated and elegant!  

Located in Toronto’s Greektown, The Local Company is Danforth Avenue’s sexiest resto-lounge. Its interior, grand, loft-style.  Its atmosphere is energetic, intimate, festive.

Whether you’re coming in for dinner, drinks or to celebrate a special occasion, The Local has it covered. View the video to get a better idea of what The Local Company is all about and what it can offer you.

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